Nearly 3,200 Toronto Police officers and civilian employees who work for the force — including a cadet-in-training and six blue hornets — earned more than $100,000 last year.

The number of Toronto Police Service employees on the 2012 Sunshine List — provincially legislated disclosure of public sector salaries exceeding $100,000 — is up by about 1,200 from the previous year.

The Toronto Police Services Board released the sprawling list in this week’s meeting agenda and will discuss it Wednesday.

Around 40% of Toronto Police’s approximately 8,000 employees made the list.

Councillor Michael Del Grande, a new member of the police services board, said he has felt for a long time that the ballooning membership on the force’s Sunshine List is a problem.

“I’ve always said it’s a ticking time bomb,” he said Monday. “It’s unaffordable.”

Del Grande said while the growth of the list is visible, the “generous” pensions the public pays officers upon retirement are not.

“These things are always pattern bargained,” he said. “What the OPP gets the Toronto Police get, etc., etc. They are outstripping the cost of inflation and outstripping the general salary increases of the public.”

Police spokesman Mark Pugash countered the sharp increase can be attributed to one thing — the service’s collective agreement with its unions.

And because of those agreements, the minimum pay grid for some ranks, such as detective-sergeant or staff-sergeant, guarantees those officers a spot on the list.

“As the years go on, more and more people are automatically on the list,” Pugash said. “They don’t have to work a second of overtime.”

Pugash said 90% of the force’s budget is salary and benefits, but added the service has been working hard to cut its overtime and premium pay. In the same salary year, those costs fell by 15%, he said.

“Our expenditures on overtime are down significantly over the last number of years, and I mean significantly,” he said. “We can control that, but the collective agreements control salary levels.”

The top earner on the list is Chief Bill Blair, who made $367,719 with taxable benefits of $3,006. He is followed by Deputy Chief Peter Sloly who made $255,499 with $2,092 in taxable benefits.

Also on the list are six parking enforcement officers, including Lallman Lall, $110,114 with $595 in taxable benefits; Hiba Demian, $109,794 with $170 in taxable benefits; and Zulfiqar Khimani, $107,584 with $595 in taxable benefits.

Cadet-in-training Aaron Broad squeaked on to the list with $100,324 and $169.74 in taxable benefits.

Pugash refused to discuss individual cases.

But Toronto Police Association president Mike McCormack defended officer salaries, saying the Sunshine List threshold hasn’t been upped since it was created in 1996. If it was matched to inflation, the list would name employees who earned around $140,000 or more.

Toronto Police numbers on Sunshine List rise to 3,200

Nearly 3,200 Toronto Police officers and civilian employees who work for the force — including a cadet-in-training and six blue hornets — earned more than $100,000 last year.

The number of Toronto Police Service employees on the 2012 Sunshine List — provincially legislated disclosure of public sector salaries exceeding $100,000 — is up by about 1,200 from the previous year.

The Toronto Police Services Board released the sprawling list in this week’s meeting agenda and will discuss it Wednesday.

Around 40% of Toronto Police’s approximately 8,000 employees made the list.

Councillor Michael Del Grande, a new member of the police services board, said he has felt for a long time that the ballooning membership on the force’s Sunshine List is a problem.

“I’ve always said it’s a ticking time bomb,” he said Monday. “It’s unaffordable.”